R&D
72 MAXIMUMPC JAN 2020 maximumpc.com
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YOU NEED TO PUT THE CASE on its side for this section,
as Zotac’s 2070 Super is a massive three-fan affair. If the
cables are in danger of getting tangled, you may want to
temporarily replace the side panel covering the rear of
the mobo plate for this step. Fit the cooler first, with a
small glob of thermal paste on the CPU before the Wraith
Prism slots down over it. Fit both clasps on either side of
the AM4 mounting bracket, then snap the black plastic
lever across to lock it in place. While we’ll get to the bulk
of the cable management later, plug the Prism into the
mobo now, on to the CPU fan connector. For the GPU,
remove the two blanking plates on the rear of the case,
then slot the card into place before screwing it down
with the same two screws from the blanking plates.SET THE CASE UPRIGHT and remove the side panel
again. The WD Black hard drive can go in next, slotting
into the two-bay drive cage toward the front of the case.
The plastic clasp that holds it in place is a bit flimsy, so
be careful not to flex it too much. Now you can install the
power supply. You need the PSU backplate, which you
can find in the box of bits and pieces that comes with the
Battlecruiser. Screw this metal oblong on to the PSU
block, then attach all the cables you need: That’s the two
cables needed for the motherboard and CPU, the two-
part GPU cable, and a SATA accessory cable for the HDD
and fan lighting. Feed these through from the back of
the case, then slot the PSU into place behind them, and
secure it with four screws from that accessories box.TRY TO KEEP THE DIFFERENT groups of cables separate,
starting with the power cables. Going largest to smallest
is the right way to go, so start with the 24-pin motherboard
power cable, then work your way through the rest,
routing them through the sharktooth rubber seals, and
plugging them into the mobo. You don’t necessarily need
both connectors for the CPU; the second one simply
provides more power for overclocking and demanding
CPU-bound tasks. On to the front I/O cables; leave
the fan and RGB connectors for now, instead sorting
out the interface cables and USB connectors. Cable
management is daunting in this case; some of these
cables are quite long, so coiling them and tying them up
behind the motherboard plate is the way to go.THE XPG BATTLECRUISER has a ton of cables to deal
with, so we’re dedicating some space to explaining
exactly how these fan cables work. You’re going to need
to split your cables into three groups: fan power cables,
gold-pin fan RGB cables, and front I/O RGB cables. As
the Battlecruiser doesn’t have a fan hub, we’re ignoring
that last set; we bundled them neatly and tucked them
under the drive cage. The other two sets need to be
daisy-chained together, leaving one connector for fan
power and one for RGB lighting for all four fans. Make
sure that the cable with the most slack is the final one
to be connected, as that one needs to be plugged into
the motherboard. This is the easiest way to set up the
lighting, and gives you the default pulsing rainbow effect.SUPER HERO POWER TRIP
CABLE CAPERS LIGHTS ON